Mary Lake

How big is Mary Lake?

How deep is Mary Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Mary Lake?

What are the closest cities to Mary Lake?

Are there boat launches on Mary Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Mary Lake?

What are the fishing regulations for Mary Lake?

There are specific fishing regulations Mary Lake that you need to know. For complete fishing regulations visit the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. To report a violation call (800) 652-9093. Need a Minnesota fishing license?

What aquatic invasive species are found in Mary Lake?

Mary Lake is a long, narrow, lightly developed lake on the Todd and Stearns County line. Fishing structure includes a rapid drop-off around most of the shore, weed lines, lots of woody cover, and a shallow, weedy bay on the south end. Mary Lake receives heavy fishing pressure for panfish and walleye and more recently bowfishing for carp. The fisheries management focus is on walleye, northern pike, and bluegill.
Walleye abundance appears normal when compared to similar type lakes. While most of the walleye caught in the survey were over 20 inches in length, smaller ones between 10 and 12 inches were captured in the spring electrofishing. Northern pike abundance has increased since the last survey in 2006 which may have a detrimental effect on the entire fish community. Having lower pike numbers decreases predation on the yellow perch and juvenile largemouth bass and walleye. Even though numbers have gone up, the average size was good at just under three pounds or 22 inches.
Yellow perch numbers went up slightly after showing declines in the last two surveys. Having higher perch numbers is desirable as they can be an important prey species for both northern pike and walleye. Perch have also been found to be instrumental in helping maintain a well-balanced, bluegill population of fast growing, quality size individuals.
Mary Lake has an abundant largemouth bass population that is dominated by small fish. Average length in the spring electrofishing catch was 8 inches due a strong year class produced in 2010. The lake can produce trophy size bass though as fish up to 19 inches were also observed in the electrofishing. Bluegills are a much sought after species on the lake so a spring assessment was conducted to evaluate the adult population. Average size observed in the assessment was 6 inches which was better than most lakes. A fair number of the bluegills exceeded 7 inches with some up to almost 9 inches measured. Black crappies provide more of a winter fishery on the lake. The size structure of the crappie catch from the spring assessment was not that impressive. While there were a couple of crappies over 9 inches in length observed, most of the fish were between 7 and 8 which could provide good fishing by next year. Mary Lake also supports populations of pumpkinseed and hybrid sunfish.
Other species available to anglers include bowfin or dogfish and white suckers. All three bullhead species, black, brown, and yellow are present in the lake. Brown bullheads were only caught in the spring panfish assessment. Some quality size bullhead up to 13 inches in length were observed in the yellow bullhead catch.
Protecting and improving the water quality of Mary Lake should be a priority of the landowners around the lake. The lake lies in an agricultural watershed and livestock use the lake directly for watering. Buffer strips along the lakeshore and inlets as well as fencing out the livestock should be promoted to reduce nutrient run-off into the lake.

What is the average air temp for Mary Lake?

Are there any state parks near Mary Lake?